Had our fill of potholes
BACK in the day, a story about someone complaining about a pothole was standard fayre in local weekly newspapers and a solid lead back on page 18. You’d get the aggrieved motorist, cyclist or nana with a now wonkywheeled shopping trolley to pose, pointing accusingly at a hole in the road and run a headline involving the words ‘furious’ and ‘disgrace.’
There might be a comment from the local council, even a local councillor or two on the picture, looking grim faced. Reader, you could now fill an entire edition with tales of pothole woe.
A new report by The Centre for Economics and Business Research reckons potholes are costing the economy millions every year thanks to prangs to cars, accidents caused by the craters and consequent congestion. That’s a lot of cash.
I know there are bigger fish in the ever growing pool of worry to fry.
War and climate change, famine abroad, poverty and crime at home – they are all hugely important issues. But that’s big picture stuff. Holes in roads is a micro level problem for sure but carries its own weighty significance.
Because the state of the highways and the general public realm – our pavements, the parks – says something about a place and the people who run it and those who live there.
Let it all go to wrack and ruin – uncut grass, rubbish in the street, big holes where tarmac used to be – and that lack of care seeps into other areas.
After all, if the council doesn’t give a stuff then why should the residents?
So graffiti will start to appear, there will be an uptick in anti-social behaviour, low level crime will rise.
Conversely, keep things as nice as possible and folk will take pride in where they live and the vibe will change from one of ‘couldn’t care less’ to ‘caring rather a lot.’
You see? Small things lead to big things.
Three cheers then for Blackpool Council which has totally cottoned onto this fact and has bitten the bullet, borrowed a chunk of money and spent a small fortune repairing the roads.
The goodly officers of Britain’s favourite seaside town have filled in a whopping 2,628 potholes in the last year alone.
Not so long ago the council was paying out £1.5m in compensation a year to people injured in accidents relating to potholes.
Last year it was £179. I’d call that a result.
Blackpool isn’t exactly awash with cash. It is one of the most deprived areas in the country and I’m sure there will have been those who raised an eyebrow at spending money on holes in the road rather than education or school dinners.
But those in charge clearly understand that to tackle the big difficulties, the little ones sometimes have to be addressed first. And prevention is always better than cure.
Potholes are costing the economy millions every year thanks to prangs to cars, accidents caused by the craters and consequent congestion